Cooling benches



May 5, 1959 w. E. BELL. ET AL COOLING BENCHES Filed Aug. 8, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet l IN VEN T'ORS WILLIAM C.E .BE1L+ Frzeoarzlcn Lmru LW Arromvays w. c. E. BELL ET AL COOLING BENCHES 3 Sllets-Sheet 2 Filed .A1-1g. 8, i955 y iNvLNTORs WILLIAM C. EBM 1FREDERKKL5M|TH M Qi vIJo/n A ATTORNEYS Malyv 5, 1959 w. c. E. BELL 'ETAL K COOLING BENCHES Filed Aug. 8, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 es .l

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mvENTons WILLIAM C. E. BELL-ffnsnmncKLSmTH COOLING BENCHES William Claude Elder Bell, Middlesbrough, and Frederick Leedham Smith, Salthurn-by-the-Sea, England, assignors to Dorman Long (Steel) Limited, Middlesbrough, England, a British company Application August 8, 1955, Serial No. 527,105

Claims priority, application Great Britain August 13, 1954 9 Claims. (Cl. 266-21) This invention relates to cooling benches, particularly for cooling hot sintered material such as sintered ore preparatory to its loading onto an endless belt conveyor or other means of transport for despatch to storage or for further processing, c g. in a smelting furnace.

The getting of ores and materials and the later preparation of the same preparatory to reduction or other metallurgical processes, involves the production, in many cases, of large quantities of fines, i.e. materials of small size, which, although containing valuable reduceable contents would, owing to their small size, cause erratic and unsatisfactory working of any furnace into which they might be charged. Additionally, such fines are known to exist in their natural state.

To enable such materials to be used, it has, particularly in the smelting of iron, become usual after incorporation of a suitable fuel, e.g. pulverised coke, to sinter the mixture by igniting the fuel in the mass and thereafter sus` taining the combustion by drawing air through the same until the materials have been fritted together, or, as it is termed, sintered into loosely-bound vitrified masses which, on discharge from the sintering pans or pallets, break up into lumps of say 8" cube downwards and up to as much as 50% in the form of vitreous smalls of downwards. These smalls are in due course returned to mix with new material and re-sintered.

The freshly sintered material is discharged from the sinter machines at temperatures of around 600 C. or more, which is too hot for convenient handling.

Attempts have been made to cool the sinter by exposing it to the atmosphere on slowly rotating roundabouts of upwards of 40 ft. in diameter in the hope that the sinter would cool suiciently in one revolution to allow of a fraction being constantly discharged. This arrangement has not proved wholly satisfactory and the percolation of air through the mass is limited due to the depth of material to be dealt with in this design. It is known to spray the sintered material with water so as to accelerate the cooling, but this is undesirable from the metallurgical point of View due to the fact that it has a tendency to increase the amount of fines.

It is also known to discharge freshly made sinter onto benches inclined to the horizontal, on which the material is held by gates at the bottom of the incline and is left to cool. Finally, the material is drawn off by opening the gates along the lower edges of the bench onto a feeder serving a conveyor belt. This system, although prodigal of space, is satisfactory but for the fact that when the sinter is tipped onto the bench the dust and smaller particles become the lower fraction of the bed as it lies on the bench, and this cools at a very slow rate.

Any attempt to accelerate the cooling by the provision of water jets or sprays produces the objectionable eect already mentioned.

According to this invention, a cooling bench of the xed inclined type is characterised in that air passages are so formed in the bench as not to become clogged with the material being cooled, and in that means are 2,885,200 Patented May 5, v1959 provided for inducing a flow of cooling gas (eg. air), through said passages and through the layer of material resting on the bench.

In one arrangement according to the invention, the

arranged for natural cooling either with or without air' passages of the aforesaid nature.

For example, a number of closed chambers may be ar-L ranged side by side along the length of the bench.

The chambers may be open to natural draught or independently supplied with low pressure air, so that diler ent parts of the bench may be cooled at different rates, and may underlay the whole width of the bench or partially. In the latter case the portion not so underlaid may be arranged as stated earlier.

The bench may comprise a number of metal panels arranged side by side and end to end, each comprising overlapping and spaced louvres or flats so as to provide the aforesaid passages which extend downwardly in an inclined manner.

The panels may be so constructed that adjacent edges thereof may overlap one another.

The panels may be of integral construction, for example, they may be formed from cast iron.

The panels may be supported by an underlying recticulated structure which permits the passage of air. The panels may be loosely located on the said structure so as to permit them to expand when heated, and the recticulated structure itself is so constructed as to allow of free expansion or contraction due to temperature changes.

One or more adjustable baille plates may be arranged at suitable positions across and above the panels for controlling the depth of material lying on the bench.

The upper part of the bench may be provided with a continuous imperforate supporting surface and the aforesaid adjustable bale plates be arranged at the junction between the imperforate portion of the bench and thatr portion provided with said passages.

The following is a more detailed description of one form of cooling bench for sintered ore according to the invention reference being made to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical section through the bench;

Figure 2 is a vertical section through one of the slotted panels;

Figure 3 is a plan view of a panel;

Figure 4 is a section through the lower edge of the panel on the line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a section through the panel on the line 5-5 of Figure 3.

Supporting the top of the bench there is a structure 11 along which extends a track 10. Cars which `have received a charge of hot sintered ore are traversed along this track and are discharge laterally over the upper edge of an appropriate section of the bench. The upper portion 19 of the bench extends downwardly from the supporting structure 11 and across a wall 12 disposed intermediate of the width of the bench. The bench terminates at its lower end opposite a number ofdischarge gates 13 which are arranged above an endless belt conl t l 3 The upper part of the bench is supported by a number of `I`sectionbeams 17 which are secured'to and extend downwardly from: the supporting structure `11 `wh1ch beamrterminateatand are supportedby the topof the said intermediate walllz. The beams `1'!` `are crossbraced by a `number of subsidiary l-section members i ll.` These beams 17 and cross members 18 support an p imperforate brick lining 19 on ,which the 1hot1sintered ore 2l is initially discharged. Alternatively this `portion of the bench may be provided with a louvred surface for the passage of cooling air by natural draught which surfaceimay be constructed in a similarrmanner to the lower` of the bench about to be described.. H

Anulllber (of adjustable upxightbale plates 21ste mnuntedfpn a super structure 9 at the lower end `of the partvof the bench supported by theberuns` 17` and cross memhersflin such a manner that the bales can be. movedtowards and away from` this part ofthe bench and thus `ooutrulthe depth of sinter overlying the lower portion `of bench.` v

Furthenlintion beams 22 are pin jointed at34 attheir upper endstobrackets 35 on the intermediate wall which `downwardly `in an inclined manner and have their `lower ends freely supported hya bracket 23 sin` thereby enabling to expand and contract withvariationsof temperature. These Isection beams lare also cross braced by I-section members 25. A further `.niet :of horizontal extending I-section `beams 2.6` rest on the upper flanges of the main I-sectionlbeams 22 andino loosely clipped thereto so that there may be a limited endwise movement.` A grid `like structure is thusfoemedwhichis arranged `to supporta numberiof cast iron; panels. l

The castfiron panels (see Figures 2 to S) are so constructed` that when appropriately laid on the upper flanges of the beams 26 they forman inclined surface made of a seriesof overlapping shelves 2.8 the loweredge of` each ofwhich shelves `is spaced above the upper edge of an ndiacent shelf `thereby providing slots` 29 extending across the througdi which slots issue low pressure airl or naturally induced coolinglair. Thesizeof thelpanel is purely arbitrary. p t l In Figures `2 to 5 the panel isshown` as comprising two overlapping shelves 28 which provide la slot 29 betweenthemnVlhe lower edge of the lower shelf of one panel is med to overlie theupperledge ofthe upper shelf ofzanother panel and in orderlto provide the required ofthe rest. Theseboases are ofsuch a height that a slot is formed of the samedimensionsas the slot 29 in the mainrbody of the panel. The :upper edges 30 lof alltheshelves are setata different angle to thchori- `ziontal than the shelf itself so that inconiunction with the under surface `of the overlappingshelfabove. an airway isprovided converging towards the outlet `of the slotZ.:

0n the underside of each panel there are cast stilening ribs Sinextending from `the top to the `bottom thereof and formedsoas to provideseating faces 37 which rest on` the lupper flange on one of the beams 26 and also soformedto provide a lug 38 for engaging an edge of flange thus preventing downward `displacement `of will beseen from Figure 4 the lower ends of the blip `so shaped at 39 as toengage the `not thewshelf of thezlower panel.

sidesof `the panel are provided with extension `risultantiandati).anunciadordx'erent levelssothat they mapfonrlsprtbe of sdiscentmnels as shown inPillmzlJ o l. v

means for supplying the `cooling zair `may compriseielecuic motor fdriven fans 42 which are supported opposite thatface of theintermedimewwall 12 nesrerthe supporting structure 11. The wall 12 may be provided with suitable openings 43 through which the cooling air may be delivered. The intermediate wall 12 is also provided with forwardly extending partitions 44 of brick or other material which extend up to the base 24 supporting the `aforesaid brackets 23 thus dividing the space beneath the surface of the cooling bench into `a number of cooling chambers. Each partitionis provided with an opening normally closed by a hatch 45 but which can be opened to allow two or more of the chambers to `be placed in parallel or in series. Each fan may be independently controlled. Alternatively, cooling air may be supplied from another source to a common main with branches serving each chamber and with or without independent air controls foreach branch; or a natural draught may be employed to provide a tiow of air up through the bed. This natural draught may be generated by the heat of the sintered `ore in which case the fans may be omitted or may not` be driven, the cold air in `the case of the chambers, being drawn in` through the fanopenings and then rising to the roof of the chambers and up through the panels.

We claim:

1. A cooling bench comprising a supporting structure,

van inclined platform supported by said structure and affording a substantially continuous sloping surface along the downward length of the platform on which surface the materialto be cooled is disposed, which platform is made up `from a numberof similar, interengaging plate membcrsspaced in a sloping position on said structure and fixed against downward sliding movement thereon, each plate partly overlapping the next adjacent plate below it, said plates affording passages of similar length formed between overlapping, spaced and downwardly inclined portions of the plates, which passages have their inlet ends opening to the underside of the platform and spaced apart along the downward length `of the platform and having their outlet ends opening to and spaced apart along the downward length of said surface each at a lower level than its inlet end, a plurality of adjustable `baffle plates positioned adjacent the first of said plate members to extend upwardly from` the platform to control the movementof material onto the rst of said plate members, at least one closed compartment beneath said platform and means associated with saidcompartment for forcing cooling air through said` passages.

2. A cooling bench according to claim 1 wherein the upper part `of the platform` is imperforate and wherein said closed compartment is disposed beneath said plates.

3. A cooling bench according to claim 1 wherein a number ofclosed compartments are arranged side by side `beneath the plates and across the width of said inclined platform with which compartments are `associated said means for forcing air upwardly through the passages afforded bysaid plates.

4. A cooling bench according to claim l wherein the means for forcing air upwardly through the passages comprise a motor driven fan arranged opposite `an opening in the wall of the closed compartment.

5. A cooling bench according to claim 1 wherein a number of closed compartments are arranged side by side beneath the plates` across the width of said` inclined platform and which closed compartments areseparatcd by dividing walls having openings and associated rcmovable hatches and with which compartments are nssociated said means for forcing air upwardly through said passages.

6.` A cooling bench according to claim l wherein `the upper part of the inclined platform is imperforate and arranged to extend across the lower end of the platform.'

` 7. A cooling bench comprising a closed compartment the upper :wallof which is formedas an inclined reticu-` lated framework having spaced horizontal cross members at diierent levels, a plurality of similar metal plates alfording sloping passages between them for the flow of cooling air, said plates covering said framework and loosely resting on said cross members so as to be capable of expanding when heated each of which plates is inclined, a plurality of adjustable baille plates arranged to extend upwardly from the outer face of said framework adjacent the first of said metal plates to control the movement of material onto the rst of said metal plates, a plurality of discharge gates positioned adjacent the bottom of said platform to control the discharge of material from said plates and means associated with said compartment for forcing air upwardly through said passages.

8. A cooling bench according to claim 7 wherein the upper end of said reticulated framework is provided with a pivotal connection for securing it to a Wall of said compartment and the lower end of which compartment rests loosely on a supporting member at the lower end of the compartment.

9. A cooling bench according to claim 7 wherein said inclined plates are arranged with their adjacent edges overlapping.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,230,832 Douglass Feb. 4, 1941 2,230,833 Douglass Feb. 4, 1941 2,527,309 Kelsey Oct. 24, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 751,677 Great Britain Jan. 4, 1946 55,035 France June 5, 1951 756,111 France Sept. 18, 1933 

